Personal computer users may on occasion desire to remove, replace or add devices such as hard disk drives, optical drives, etc. to and from their personal computer hard drives. It is essential that such procedures can be performed safely and without complication by the average personal computer user. Personal computer hard drives are typically housed in a chassis, a structure that sits either on the desk or on the floor near the desk. A typical chassis has at least one removable side panel, and a removable front panel for the installation and removal of devices such as optical drives and diskette drives, etc.
Some computer components, such as CD-ROM drives and disk drives for other removable media are typically mounted on the front of a computer system. These computer components are located behind the front panel, and are accessible through openings in the front panel. Some conventional chassis include front panels that can be quickly installed and released. However, these front panels typically lack structural strength, and it is easy for a user to inadvertently knock the front panel off the chassis. Additionally, the locking mechanisms used to hold the front panel in place deteriorate in structural integrity after repeated installation and removal of the front panel. Other systems provide a high-strength connection of the front panel to the chassis but are physically complicated and not intuitive to remove and install. Other systems require at least two people to install and/or remove the front panel from the chassis.